Standing
by VintageAllycat
Summary: I was just standing there in my favourite place as always, just standing. That’s when I saw her, mirroring me, just standing." How much will things change when Troy sees Gabriella and is instantly captivated? Troyella x
1. Deep Girl

**Hey guys, sorry to say this but other stories? I chopped them all up and fed them to my hungry pack of adorable Labradors. **

**But hopefully I'll continue this one through, depends if you guys like it. R&R and I'll definitely put it in one of my priorities to continue this. **

**Longer than my other story chapters but I hope you like it. **

I was just standing there in my normal place as always, just standing. That's when I saw her, mirroring me, just standing.

It was a bright day. The sun was shining and people were in an especially happy mood since I won them the basketball championship. That was just it. Basketball was utterly my life. But then again, it wasn't. With everyone pressuring me all the time to win and with my coach at home with me 24/7, basketball had started to become… boring. Maybe it was because I was too good. Could I be too good at a sport that could be forever improved? I frowned.

Then I shrugged. Maybe I just didn't want to play anymore. I was distracted by Alicia, my supposed girlfriend who giggled at me and waved her arms in the air to grab my attention. I didn't really think of her romantically any more. Sure we'd been out a couple of times but the chemistry just wasn't there.

"Hey Troy, baby!" she smiled. "How's the basketball superstar?" she crooned and I winced.

She obviously noticed and mistook it for pleasure and pinched my cheeks and smiled up at me like I was a baby.

"Good thanks." I noticed Alicia White my "girlfriend" was getting ready to make out. I grabbed my best friend Chad by his goofy shirt and hissed in his ear, "Look I'm going now, cover me for Alicia."

He smirked; he knew how much I didn't like her.

"I know a solution to that."

"What?"

"Two words – break – up – with – her."

"That's four!"

He frowned and counted out the words on his fingers. "I was so sure it was four…"

"Look it doesn't matter! I'm going."

With that, I dashed off down to where Alicia would never in her wildest dreams journey into without an order from God himself – the library. Strangely, it was basically deserted, not that anyone came in the first place.

That's when I saw her, mirroring me, just standing.

She was in exactly my favourite spot in the whole place, sitting on the little red sofa next to the small wooden table.

Maybe it was fate, a coincidence. But it definitely happened. From that moment on I thought, would things be different, change?

As I watched her turn the pages of her book I realised she had caught me staring at her. I thought in horror, it could have been mistaken for checking her out! But she simply smiled at me sweetly and beckoned me over.

I followed the pathway of her fingers, hypnotized.

"Hey," she smiled.

"Hey," I tried to state casually, in an it's – no – big – deal kind of way. She laughed at this and it sounded like music.

"You're Troy Bolton," she clearly stated.

"How do you know my name?" I noted in horror that it came out in the wrong way; I was supposed to say "How do you know _my _name?" in a casual way but instead it came out in a "How do _you_ know my name?" as though I thought she was weird and I didn't want her to know my name.

She probably noticed but was too polite to say anything. Instead she tilted her pointed finger up above her where there was a large poster with my face, my name and "HOT!" written all over it.

I could have died of embarrassment.

Somehow I didn't want this girl to think that I was one of those guys that all the girls in school adored and was so full of himself and big - headed. Because I wasn't. Or at least I tried not to be.

She laughed gently at my embarrassment.

"Don't you just love this place?" she gazed around the small corner she was in and ran her finger along the wooden table.

"Yes," I replied dreamily. "It's my favourite place in the world."

She reflected my dreamy gaze and replied, "You smell that? It's the table, sandalwood. I love sandalwood."

And somehow, the way she said it made _me _want to love sandalwood. I sniffed. The scent didn't smell any different to usual.

"You're right. It does smell nice." I don't know why I said this. Maybe it was because I wanted to please her, get to know her, just a little bit…

This did seem to please her so she rewarded me with her name.

"Gabriella," she grinned happily.

"Troy."

She grinned, "I know. Remember?" She pointed at the poster again.

I resisted the urge to throw myself at the nearest wall, screaming "IDIOT! IDIOT! IDIOT!

Then she stepped up, lay her book down and disappeared as mysteriously as I saw her.

Instantly I glanced down at the book, "To Kill a Mockingbird."

Deep.

**What did you think? **

**Ally xoxox**


	2. Casual Grace

**Hey people! This is another chapter! Thank you for all the amazing reviews! Today because I'm not in an emo mood, I'll try and make this story a little more… cute. But not by much.**

**If you review as much, I might do this again… and if I'm not as tired and… emo. ******

**Read and enjoy. **

The rest of the day passed in a dreamy daze. The next day I eagerly looked around the homeroom, just to check if she was there. Maybe it would be like some classic fairytale in that way – she already had me captivated.

She wasn't there.

In free period, I rushed over the library, skipping basketball practice. If I could just see this girl again… well maybe basketball wouldn't matter so much.

She was there sitting in my spot, reading a different book.

Instantly she looked up. I would have thought she would try something like Alicia would, slowly pretending she hadn't seen me and then when she did, jumping up and down, squealing.

But she didn't.

Maybe she hadn't noticed me, but I would like to think that she had.

"Hey!" she called out across the library which was met with shushing and a lot of glaring from the librarian.

Gabriella simply stuck her tongue cheekily out at her and when the librarian's back was turned, she stuck her middle finger up. This made both of us laugh. She doubled over and then threw her head, filled with masses of pretty curls, back to laugh more openly. This made me realize how pretty she really was. She didn't have those superstar looks like Alicia, or even Sharpay, but there was something about her, something in those deep eyes. They hid something beneath them. Something different.

But her clothes shared nothing to this. She was wearing jeans and a simple bohemian chemise that flowed down her arms.

She motioned me over anyway after her giggling fit.

"You finished "To Kill a Mockingbird" already?" I asked. man this girl was a fast reader. I wouldn't have even read that book, let alone on a day or two. It made me think about how different we were. And yet, we were both here, alone.

She however, raised an eyebrow, "You been spying on me, Troy?"

"Who said I was spying on you?"

"You just now when you told me the name of my book."

"I just happened to look at the cover of the book and recognise it!"

"Stalker."

I looked astonished but Gabriella immediately broke out into a wide grin. She looked ready to have a laughing fit all over again.

"I'm only joking."

I sighed in relief. Had a really been spying on her? I was sure I was just looking at her book. But would I have done that for Chad, my best friend? Or even my girlfriend? I wasn't so sure anymore. But there was something about her that made me want to find out these things. She was just so mysterious, always avoiding questions.

"I know."

"Do you?"

There she was, at it again. It was more of a statement that a question. She made me so unsure on what to say.

"So… I haven't seen you around school since yesterday. Where have you been?"

I just hoped I didn't sound like I was prying into her life. I was just trying to be friendly. I think.

She shrugged. "I just moved here to Albuquerque from Boston. Very cool place you got here. Very…" She scrunched up her nose like she was trying to remember something really hard. It reminded me of when I was in kindergarten and I had stolen a little girl's cookie and she scrunched up her nose and cried.

"Snazzy."

I raised an eyebrow. "Snazzy?"

"Snazzy," she repeated and smiled.

She checked her Tag Heuer watch and it glinted through the dark library. Then she looked up towards me. "You have a free period?"

"Yeah, you?"

"No. Wanna go for a walk?"

I was surprised. She didn't seem like she was the type to skip school.

"Ok then," I said carefully, "Where do you wanna go?"

She grinned slowly. "I was thinking beach."

* * *

We walked along, side by side on the beach, our footprints imprinted in the crumbling sand. The sun shone too perfectly. 

We jumped up and sat on a little wooden ledge that overlooked the ocean and on the other side, the sand. She had rolled up her jeans to her thighs and was dipping her feet into the cool, salty water while shaking her hair out of a messy bun.

"I love it here at this time of day," she said and looked up blissfully at the sky, closing her eyes. Her sun – kissed skin glittered against the blazing sun. A little breeze picked up and her hair started to sway in the coolness.

The ocean was lapping at our feet gently and glittering against the sun. It was so romantic. I looked down at Gabriella's face which was the picture of euphoria and had the sudden urge to kiss her. If it were any other girl – I would have. But not Gabriella, and not yet.

"It's so romantic here at this time of day," she remarked with her eyes still closed.

It was almost as though she had read my thoughts.

I moistened my lips as she continued. "We never had that in Boston." She gestured her hand out to the ocean and finally opened her eyes. As I stared into them, I saw two tiny suns reflecting out of them.

"How was life like in Boston?" I asked.

She looked down andthe little suns disappeared.

"Boring," she shuddered. "That's one thing I cannot at all costs stand. Boredom. I have to continually search for something new, something exciting. Something vibrant, something new. That's why I move so much."

Was I that something… new? That exciting thing? And if so… what would happen when she got bored? Would she leave Albuquerque? Would she leave me?

"But this place… it feels like I'm being drawn to it. Something… or someone," she looked up and smiled again.

I felt relieved again for a second.

Now would be the best time to ask, I thought. I took a deep breath and asked. "Why did you skip school?"

She gazed up at me with an angelic grace.

I felt my face moving towards hers, my mouth moving towards her lips. But then someone laughed far away and the moment was lost.

Then she tapped her nose and winked. "Wouldn't you like to know, stalker?"

There she was, avoiding the questions again. It made me feel uneasy but I wanted to know something about her – anything.

I decided to push on. "Yes, I would."

She looked shocked for a second but then masked over it with a look of amusement. She shrugged her thin shoulders and kicked at the water with her feet. "School's never done much for me."

"Is that so?"

She looked at me over her bare sun – kissed shoulder and grinned again. "I'm due to inherit millions anyways."

This time I was almost positive she was joking, but her face looked so serious even though it was smiling.

"Well, hopefully, when you're rich and famous, I can work as the cleaner at your mansion," I said in the most posh English accent I could put on.

"You better know how to wash the dishes. I like my plates as clear as crystal."

With that, she swung off the ledge and slung her pack over her shoulders. She started to take off towards the school. I checked my watch. There was no point anyway. School was over about 20 minutes ago.

"You coming or not, stalker?"

Surprised, I leapt off and ran to catch up with her. When I caught up beside her, I did the unthinkable and reached out for her hand.

My hand was clasped in hers.

She gasped quietly. From the expression on her face, she was as surprised as I was, but she didn't let go.

My heart was beating so fast I could hear it in my ears.

But it felt so right.

I could swear I was blushing underneath the setting sun but I could see nothing past Gabriella's soft smile that looked so beautiful – almost as though she was radiating sunshine.

When we came to the end of the beach she pulled her hand away. Mine still felt warm from where her hand had been.

"See you around… stalker," she murmured softly and looked through me with such undeniable beauty, it took my breath away.

Then she strolled away with a casual grace, her jeans still rolled up over her thighs, her feet still dripping with the shiny, salty water.

I started to turn, to walk away, when I heard a call behind me.

"Come round sometime. Maybe I'll let you go in the Jacuzzi."I was ready to reply, but her slight figure was already disappearing in amongst the trees.

I chuckled to myself as I walked away. She wasn't lying about the millions.

**Frankly, I don't give a damn, whether or not there are beaches in Albuquerque. I don't really care. It's a story. **

**Now, this week, you get to tell me your favourite part in this! Personally mine was all the pretty phrases like, "angelic grace" and "undeniable beauty." So… pretty, right? Select your favourite and I'll be sure to include more parts like it. **

**Aren't you glad I wasn't in an emo mood today, huh?**

**Love you guys, leave loads of reviews!**

**Ally x**


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